Bristol Rovers are searching for their next manager after being relegated to League Two for the 2025/26 seasonSport
Daniel Hargraves Bristol Rovers reporter
09:30, 05 May 2025
Darrell Clarke and Michael Duff are the early bookies’ favourites for the Bristol Rovers job(Image: Getty Images)
Bristol Rovers legend Darrell Clarke has emerged as the early bookies favourite to take over at the Memorial Stadium after the club parted ways with Inigo Calderon over the weekend.
Rovers will be looking for their fourth permanent manager in 18 months ahead of their return to League Two following relegation.
Clarke’s name has been put forward by numerous Gasheads as their personal preference to get the job with the ex-Gas manager currently out of work having left Barnsley in March and is currently priced at 4/9 to make a return to north Bristol.
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It has been nearly six-and-a-half years since Clarke left Rovers having spent four-and-a-half years in charge in BS7. The 47-year-old guided the Pirates to back-to-back promotions from the National League to League One and led to the Gas’ highest finish for the last 25 years – 10th in the third tier in the 2016/17 campaign.
Since leaving Rovers, Clarke has managed at Walsall, Port Vale, Cheltenham Town and Barnsley. The 47-year-old added a third promotion to his managerial CV when winning the League Two play-offs with Vale in 2022.
As always when it comes to managerial searches, bookmaker odds have to be taken with a pinch of salt. It is currently unclear whether Clarke is even in the running for the job.
Meanwhile, ex-Huddersfield Town, Swansea City, Barnsley and Cheltenham Town manager Michael Duff is second-favourite at 15/8. It is understood that Duff still resides in Cheltenham having lost his job at Huddersfield in March, coincidentally after losing 1-0 against Rovers at the Mem.
The 47-year-old has managed at Championship level, spending less than six months at Swansea in the first half of the 2023/24 season, but is best known for taking Barnsley to the League One play-off final the campaign before while also leading Cheltenham to League Two promotion in 2021.
Ex-Northampton Town and Bolton Wanderers bosses Jon Brady and Ian Evatt are also in the mix at 8/1 before the odds started to get longer with a handful of other names linked.
The likes of Luke Williams, Ian Holloway, Garry Monk, Des Buckingham and Steve Evans are priced at 16/1 while there are even longer odds for Leam Richardson, Shaun Maloney and Rob Edwards at 20/1. Even former Rovers manager Joey Barton, who hasn’t been in the dugout since leaving the Mem in October 2023, has been priced at 25/1.
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Early bookies favourites to be next Bristol Rovers manager in full*
- Darrell Clarke – 4/9
- Michael Duff – 15/8
- Jon Brady and Ian Evatt – 8/1
- Luke Williams, Ian Holloway, Garry Monk, Des Buckingham, Steve Evans – 16/1
- Leam Richardson, Shaun Maloney, Rob Edwards – 20/1
- Brian Barry Murphy, Joey Barton – 25/1
*odds provided by BettingOdds and are correct at the time of writing
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